About
Vanessa Rangel spent part of her childhood in Mexico, while her father worked as an undocumented gardener in California. Her mother raised her and her siblings in Mexico before they were able to relocate to La Habra, California. Growing up she recognized the opportunity to overcome the challenges that her family faced through a good education. After attending UCLA, she realized that, like herself, many people in underserved communities experienced disparities during situations in which they were unable to pay for their medications and/or were denied access to comprehensive care due to health insurance coverage limitations. Vanessa’s desire to pursue medicine solidified through experiences in organizations such as Chicanos/Latinos for Community Medicine (CCM), Ventura County Medical Center (VCMC) Summer Scholars Program, UCLA PREP, HIGH AIMS, AltaMed's AmeriCorps Program and many others. With the leadership experience she gained as the President of MiMentor, she hopes to continue implementing innovative mentoring programs to help reach more pre-health professional students in an effort to continue advancing the research and service of the medical field. Vanessa is part of UCLA PRIME pursuing a combined MD/MBA to become a strong leader in medicine for medically underserved communities. Vanessa is excited to be part of the LMSA community that already feels like a second family. =)
Undergrad Institution: UC Los Angeles
Hometown: La Habra, CA